Ministers 'washing hands of their responsibility' for NHS

Labour has accused ministers of "washing their hands of responsibility" for the NHS, after a Tory health minister was recorded saying the government reforms had given away control of the health service.

Jane Ellison as recorded saying the government reforms had given away control of the NHS. Credit: PA

"Andrew Lansley's NHS shake-up was a £3 billion fiasco that nobody wanted and nobody voted for. All it succeeded in doing was in increasing bureaucracy and driving costs up. Now ministers are simply washing their hands of responsibility for our NHS," he added.